The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, named in honour of the Soviet physicist and political dissident Andrei Sakharov, is awarded each year by the European Parliament. It was set up in 1988 to honour individuals and organisations defending human rights and fundamental freedoms.

 
Each nominee must have the support of at least 40 MEPs, and each individual Member may support only one nominee. Signed nominations accompanied by supporting evidence are then assessed in a joint meeting of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET), the Subcommittee on Human Rights (DROI) and the Committee on Development (DEVE). A shortlist of three candidates is drawn up through a vote by AFET and DEVE committees, and then submitted to the Conference of Presidents for a final vote. The winner is usually announced in October, and the award ceremony takes place in November/December at plenary sitting in Strasbourg.

Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar are the 2016 laureates of Parliament's Sakharov Prize.

On 5 October 2018 the Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2018 to Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad.

Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar, Sakharov Prize laureates 2016

30 years of Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought- Sakharov Prize Network deliveries: the Sakharov Prize fellowship for human rights defenders and the EP -  Sakharov traineeship - debate with fellows and trainees

Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought 2016 [13686]

Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought 2016: Nadia Murad Basee Taha and Lamiya Aji Bashar,

N. KHAIRALLAH; MURAD BASEE, Nadia; AJI BASHAR, Lamiya

Meeting of the EP delegation for relations with Iraq

Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016 - TV Interview

AJI BASHAR, Lamiya; MURAD BASEE, Nadia ; Federica MOGHERINI, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy

Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016 - Meeting with HR/VP Federica MOGHERINI

DIAZ DE MERA GARCIA CONSUEGRA, Agustin (EPP, ES); AJI BASHAR, Lamiya; MURAD BASEE, Nadia

Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016 - UN ‚ÄúTogether‚Äù campaign aiming to change negative perceptions and attitudes towards refugees and migrants

Martin SCHULZ - EP President in plenary session week 50 2016 in Strasbourg.  Awarding of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016.

SCHULZ, Martin (S&D, DE); MURAD BASEE, Nadia [13697]; AJI BASHAR, Lamiya [13698]

Press conference on the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016

MURAD BASEE, Nadia [13697];AJI BASHAR, Lamiya [13698]

MURAD BASEE, Nadia; AJI BASHAR, Lamiya; SCHULZ, Martin (S&D, DE)

Martin SCHULZ - EP President meets with Nadia MURAD BASEE and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, winners of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016

Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016 -   Stavros LAMBRIDINIS - EU special Representative for Human Rights meets with the 2016 Laureates

Interview of Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, 2016 laureates of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought

Martin SCHULZ - EP President, Nadia Murad BASEE TAHA

Martin SCHULZ - EP President meets with Nadia Murad BASEE TAHA representing Yazidi people suffering from ISIS

In this Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015 file photo, Iraqi Yazidi Nadia Murad Basee Taha speaks with Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos during a meeting in Athens. An Islamic State rape victim, Pope Francis and the Afghan women's cycling team are among the known candidates for the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize as the nomination window was set to close Monday, Feb. 1, 2016.  (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis, File)

Here is a speech from Nadia Murad delivered in the European Parliament in 2016. Nadia Murad is a survivor of the darkest hours of Islamic State. Sold and exploited as a sex slave, she managed to escape and find refuge in Germany. Together with Lamiya Aji Bashar, she has become a spokesperson for victims of sexual violence and an advocate for Iraq's Yazidi community. Honoured with several international human rights prizes, including the Sakharov Prize awarded by the European Parliament, she takes the floor to speak for her people. CONTENT: 00:00:00 Nadia Murad portrait 00:00:43 Sakharov Prize as an honour 00:01:36 Nadia Murad’s story 00:04:20 Europe symbol of humanity Restrictions: ©The material may not be edited and must be shown entirely.

EPRS - Speeches that have made Europe: Nadia Murad (2016)

This Memoclip illustrates Nobel Peace Prize awardees in the EP: Willy BRANDT, Mohamed Anwar Al-SADAT, Lech WALESA, Desmond TUTU, Oscar ARIAS SANCHEZ, The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, Mikhail GORBACHEV, Aung San Suu Kyi, Rigoberta Menchú Tum, Nelson MANDELA, Yasser ARAFAT, Yitzhak RABIN, José RAMOS-HORTA, Jody WILLIAMS, John HUME, Kim Dae-jung, Kofie ANNAN, Shirin EBADI, Rajendra PACHAURI, Martti AHTISAARI, Ellen JOHNSON SIRLEAF, the EUROPEAN UNION, Kailash SATYARTHI, Malala YOUSAFZAI, Juan Manuel SANTOS, Denis MUKWEGE, Nadia MURAD and David BEASLEY

Memoclip: The EP meeting place for the Nobel Peace Prize awardees (updated version 2020)

Over the past 40 years the European Parliament has had the honour of welcoming several Nobel Peace Prize laureates such as: Willy BRANDT, Mohamed Anwar Al-SADAT, Lech WALESA, Desmond TUTU, Mikhail GORBACHEV, Nelson MANDELA, Yasser ARAFAT, Yitzhak RABIN, John HUME, Kofie ANNAN, Shirin EBADI, Malala YOUSAFZAI, Denis MUKWEGE and Nadia MURAD

EP rewind: Nobel Peace Prize laureates at the EP

This clip shows the Laureates of the Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought since 1988 to 2017.

Clip: Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought (1988 - 2017)

This clip shows the Laureates of the Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought since 1988 to 2018.

Clip: Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought (1988 - 2018)

This clip shows the Laureates of the Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought since 1988 to 2019.

Clip: Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought (1988 - 2019)

Clip presenting Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, 2016 laureates of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought

Clip: Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, 2016 laureates of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought

This memoclip presents all the Sakharov Prize laureates from 1988 to 2016

Memoclip: Sakharov Prize laureates - 1988-2016

Visit of Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, 2016 laureates of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2016, to the European Parliament in Strasbourg. Arrival, welcome by Martin SCHULZ, EP President, and roundtable.

Sakharov Prize 2016: Martin SCHULZ, EP President meets with Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, laureates of Sakharov Prize 2016, arrival and roundtable

Award of the Sakharov Prize 2016 during the plenary session of December in Strasbourg to Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar, members of the Yazidi / Yezidi Community. Opening statement by Martin SCHULZ, EP President. Statements by Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar and award of the prize.

Sakharov Prize 2016: extracts from the ceremony of award to Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR

Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, survivors of sexual enslavement by Islamic State (IS), receive the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in the hemicycle in Strasbourg. The laureates are commended by the European Parliament for acting as spokespersons for women whose lives have been blighted by sexual violence, and act as advocates for Iraq’s Yazidi community.

Address by Nadia MURAD and Lamiya AJI BASHAR, 2016 Sakharov Prize laureates, during the award ceremony

Announcement by Martin SCHULZ, EP President of the names of Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar, advocate for the Yazidi community and for women surviving sexual enslavement by Islamic State, as Winners of the 2016 Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought, during the EP plenary session (24-27/10) in Strasbourg.

Announcement by Martin SCHULZ, EP President of the names of Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar, as Winners of the 2016 Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought

Announcement of the three finalists for the Sakharov Prize 2016, at the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) and Committee on Development (DEVE) in cooperation with the Subcommittee on Human Rights (DROI), in the EP in Brussels. Annoucement by Elmar BROK (EPP, DE), Chair of the AFET Committee: Can D&uuml;ndarn and the defenders of freedom of thought and expression in Turkey, Mustafa Dzhemilev and Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar.

Sakharov Prize 2016: announcement of the three finalists at the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Committee on Development in cooperation with the Subcommittee on Human Rights

During the EP Plenary session (03-06/10) in Strasbourg, MEPs present the candidates&nbsp;to the&nbsp;Sakharov Prize 2016. Statements by Marie-Christine VERGIAT (GUE/NGL, FR), Ska KELLER (Greens/EFA, DE), Fabio Massimo CASTALDO (EFDD, IT), Jacek SARYUSZ-WOLSKI (EPP, PL), Tunne KELAM (EPP, EE), Charles TANNOCK (ECR, UK), Josef WEIDENHOLZER (S&amp;D, AU), Beatriz BECERRA BASTERRECHEA (ALDE, ES), Ilhan KYUCHYUK (ALDE, BG).

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